


Escape Clause

by MsFaust



Series: Inky Tales [61]
Category: Bendy and the Ink Machine
Genre: Demon Deals, Gen, Good Joey - Freeform, Rated for safety
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-12
Updated: 2017-12-12
Packaged: 2019-02-13 22:36:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 327
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12994005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MsFaust/pseuds/MsFaust
Summary: Sometimes, you have to hurt the ones you care about in order to protect them. Joey Drew knows this all too well.





	Escape Clause

For the fifth time that day, Joey looked at the list in his hand. It contained the names of all the employees at the studio--from the animators to the band members to the maintenance people, they were all there. Numerous names had been crossed off:

_Samuel 'Sammy' Lawrence_  
_Susan 'Susie' Campbell_  
_Norman Polk_  
_Shawn Flynn_  
_Thomas Connor_

All of them had quit due to his crazy ideas, corner cutting, and/or the Ink Machine.

Just as he hoped they would.

With a relieved smile, he crossed _Allison Pendle_ , _Wallace 'Wally' Franks_ , and _Grant Cohen_ off.

"Three more gone," he said aloud. "Three more safe."

Setting the list down, he opened his desk drawer, pulling out an old piece of parchment, reading over a particular passage:

"Payment: the soul of the undersigned and all individuals working under him at the time of payment, to be collected upon the undersigned's death or the closing of the company, whichever occurs first."

It was a high price to pay for the machine that could make his creations real. But Joey had gone over the contract very carefully before he signed it. He'd noticed the words _at the time of payment_ , and had asked if that included those who were fired or had quit. To his relief, it did not.

So he'd started a campaign to get his employees to leave, not wanting to fire them for no good reason. It was painful, and he hated it, but he was not going to let the people who worked for him suffer for the sake of his dream. He'd even made sure not to tell Bendy or any of the other Toons about the deal, just to remain out of sight and that if anything happened to him, they should find Henry.

"I may not be able to save everyone," he said. "But the more of you I can save, the better--even if it means I have to drive you away."


End file.
